What is love?

One can love a sister, a brother, a mother, a father, grand's of the two latters, uncles and aunts, cousins and friends, strangers, pets, the sunlight on a warm evening reflecting through a prism held by fishing line stuck by a little suction cup to a dusty window. You can love food from cake to roast beef, even those tiny individual candy bars that are never enough but just give you a taste of chocolate before you pop in the second one. One is able to love the feeling of carpet between toes or tension in a hammocks string when you lay in that 'u' position swinging delightfully with each motion of your body. We can declare love for sounds coming from a stereo, love for that particular sound wave in coordination with other sound waves that make it to the inner ear as that thing we call music. Some of us love to feel a little pain, love feeling that edge of life that lets us know we're alive, nerves tingling with the sensation that something is not quite right, mind ablaze with the knowledge that the power to commit more pain or to stop it is in grasp. One might love a particular spot in the world, a city, a hill, a nook, a field of sunflowers swaying in the breeze. From flying an airplane at sound-breaking speeds or laying near comatose, the only movement the flipping of pages and the flitting of eyes as words are dragged into a brain to organize, recognize, and realize their meaning in correlation to each other. Love is all around us, continually exuding from ourself and others. When what someone doesn't love is near, or when it’s something they hate we are quick to learn it. The disgust in the face as a lump of food falls out of the mouth that tried something new or something forgotten. The shying away from a certain lump of shadow, or the herding together to keep away from something strange and unknown.We are all capable of love aren't we? When there are so many experiences yet to happen, an infinite amount or if not infinite, at the very least high enough that no one should ever have to worry about nothing new happening in their life. We can declare instant love upon sight of another person, upon hearing a brand new song, upon seeing a new collection of pixels upon a computer screen.And so many are interested in making love, loving that lustful feeling, that connection with another person's soul, the grunting, sweaty, eye-squinting experience, or maybe just the arms of the other wrapped around the body to feel that person's heart beating next to that vein in the neck that beats and caused "suddenly his/her heart leapt into their throat", or some such saying.

Love is also the feeling someone has for a job perhaps, for a hobby, for a lobby of a hotel that always smells just so and has plants hanging from the wall giving the illusion you had just stepped out of a dreary gray, salt-encrusted winter into a touch of the exotic. For the grip of a ball, the tension in a muscle, the throw, watching it spin just so to the exact right spot. For rolling a die and dreaming up daring adventures against ancient dragons, or of that risk of gaining or losing it all. For the whoosh of air in free fall from 10,000 feet, or the watery embrace of sea exploring. For healing a sick child, for holding a kite string as it plays upon a wind we've no control over. For simply placing one foot in front of the other, for drinking with a group of friends and laughing at things that'll never be thought of again but seem so intelligent at the time.

What can love not be? Maybe that is the closest we will ever be to knowing what love is. Because if love cannot be a certain things...to anyone...then love must simply be everything else.

So I ask you to love, experience this feeling throughout every nerve of your body, every electric-impulse of a brain cell, every beat of your heart.

Because that's what love is to me. Simply everything.

Love is ...

Love is nothing,Without a kiss.
Love is everything,When you feel like this.
Love is precious,When they mean everything to you.
Love is painful,When they're not with you.
Love is priceless,
The true kind can't be bought.
Love is life...When it's all you've got.

Which wolf wins?

One evening, a grandfather told his grandson about the conflict that goes on inside each one of us. "The battle is between two wolves," he said. "One wolf is called Evil, and it is anger, jealousy, lies, arrogance, guilt, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other wolf uses almost the same letters in his name, which shows how close they are to each other. This wolf is called Life, and it is love, peace, truth, hope, humility, kindness, and compassion." The grandson thought about this for a few moments and then asked, "Which wolf wins, Grandpa?" "The one you feed," the grandfather replied.

Life is neither good nor evil, but only a place for good and evil. - Aurelius Marcus

Most folks are about as happy as theymake up their minds to be. - Abraham Lincoln

The grandfather's answer describes better than a thousand words the dilemma we often experience. It is not easy to be positive when things go bad, which is of course exactly when being positive is most important. But how can we change our mood? Here's how I do it: When someone hurts me badly, I write a detailed letter to him or her, describing my disappointment, my anger, and my bruised ego. And then I read it, read it again and again, and eventually, after a few days, weeks or even months, I tear it up. This exercise, as it draws off negativity and helps me discover the positive side of the situation, allows my "Life wolf" to win. Which wolf are you feeding right now?

Have a nice day!!

Beauty comes in surprising shapes

HI! HOW are you?" The woman smiled as she took the seat beside me.She had to lower herself slowly, squeezing her ample bottom intothe seat, filling all available space.
Positioning herself comfortably, she plopped her enormous arm on ourcommon armrest. Her immensity saturated the space around us,shrinking me and my seat into insignificance.
I cringed and reclined towards the window.
She leaned towards me and repeated her greeting in an upbeat, friendlyvoice.Her face towered above my head, forcing me to turn to look at her."Hi," I replied with obvious loathing.
I turned away to stare out the cabin window, sulking silently about the longhours of discomfort I was going to experience with this monster beside me.She nudged me with her meaty arm. "My name is Laura. I'm from Britain.How about you? Japan?"
"Malaysia," I barked.
"I'm so sorry! Will you accept my heartfelt apology? Come, shake my hand.If we're going to spend six hours side-by-side on this flight, we'dbetter be friends,don't you think?" A palm waved in front of my face. I shook the handreluctantly,still silent.
Laura started a conversation with me, taking no notice of my unfriendlyreactions. She talked excitedly about herself and her trip to Hong Kong tosee her friends. She rattled off a list of things she was going to buy forher students in the boarding school where she was teaching.
I gave her one-word answers to her questions about me. Unperturbed by mycoldness, she nodded as she made appreciative comments to my answers.Her voice was warm and caring. She was considerate and obliging whenwe were served drinks and meals, making sure that I had room to maneuverin my seat. "I don't want to clobber you with my elephant size!" she saidwithutmost sincerity.
To my surprise, her face which repulsed me hours before now openedinto extraordinary smiles, lively and calm at the same time. Icouldn't help butlet down my guard slowly.
Laura was an interesting conversationalist. She was well read in manysubjects from philosophy to science. She turned a seemingly unimportantsubject into something to explore and understand. Her comments werehumorous and inspirational. When our topic turned to cultures, I waspleasantlysurprised by her intelligent comments and well-thought-out analysis.
During our conversation, Laura managed to make every cabin crew whoserved us walk away laughing at her jokes. When a flight attendant wasclearingour plates, Laura cracked several jokes about her size. The flight attendantroared with laughter as she grabbed Laura's hand, "You really make my day!"
For the next few minutes, Laura listened attentively and gave pointers totheflight attendant's weight problem. The grateful attendant said before sherushed off, "I've got to work. I'll come back later and talk to you aboutit."
I asked Laura, "'Have you ever thought about losing some weight?""No. I've worked hard to get this way. Why would I want to give it up?""You aren't worried about cardiovascular diseases that come with beingoverweight?""Not at all. You only get the diseases if you're worried about yourweight all the time.You see advertisements from slimming centres that say, 'Liberate yourselffromyour extra baggage so that you are free to be yourself.' It's rubbish!You're liberatedonly if you're comfortable about who you are, and what you look like anytimeof the day and anytime of the year! Why would I want to waste my time onslimming regimes when I have so many other important things to do and somany people to be friends with? I eat healthily and walk regularly;I'm this sizebecause I am born to be big! There is more to life than worrying aboutweight all day long." She sipped at her wine. "Besides, God gives me somuch happiness that I need a bigger body to hold all of it! Why would I loseweight to lose my happiness?" Taken aback by her reasoning, I chuckled.Laura continued. "Folks often see me as a fat lady with big bosoms, bigthighsand a big bottom that no man would even bother to cast a glance at. They seeme as a slob. They think I'm lazy and have no willpower. They'rewrong." She heldup her glass to a passing flight attendant. "More of this magnificent winepleases." She smiled sweetly at the attendant. "Great service from yourcrew.May God bless all of you?"
She turned to me, "I'm actually a slim person inside. I'm so full ofenergy thatpeople won't be able to keep up with me. This extra flesh is here to slowme down; otherwise I'll be running everywhere chasing after men!"
"Do men chase after you?" I asked jokingly.
"Of course they do. I'm happily married but men still keep proposing to me."Most of them have relationship problems and they need someone to confidein.For some reason, they like to talk to me. I think I should have been acounselorinstead of a school teacher!"
Laura paused before she said thoughtfully, "You know, the relationshipbetween men and women is so complicated. Women worship men and callthem, 'Honey' until they find out they have been lied to, and then they turninto bitter gourds! Men love women so much that they see them as their soulmates until they look at their credit card bills, and then women becomedevils with tridents!"
Laura's enthralling conversation had turned the flight into somethingthoroughlyenjoyable. I was also fascinated by the way people were drawn to her. By theend of the flight, almost half the cabin crew was standing near theaisle by us,laughing and joking with Laura. The passengers around us joined in themerry-makingtoo. Laura was the centre of attention, filling the cabin withdelightful warmth.
When we waved goodbye to each other at the arrival lounge at Hong Kong'sKai Tak Airport, I watched her walking towards a big group of adoringadults andkids. Cheers sounded as the group hugged and kissed Laura. She turned aroundand winked at me.
I was stunned, as the realisation set in: Laura was the most beautiful womanI had ever met in my life.
Have a nice day…